For the first time since his arrival at Penn State, quarterback Rocco Becht spoke to the media on Wednesday afternoon inside the Beaver Stadium recruiting lounge.
While he’s been acclimating to the new environment, Becht hasn’t thrown a pass since stepping on campus as he recovers from a pair of shoulder injuries — a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder and an AC joint sprain in his right — both of which he battled through during the season at Iowa State in 2025.
“It was really hard,” Becht said. “It was probably the lowest place that I’ve been in my collegiate career, mentally and physically.”
Becht said he “felt like it was my responsibility to give them everything I had,” though his statistics took a dip during his senior season with the Cyclones, and they endured a four-game losing skid at one point.
After the season ended and the team opted out of a bowl game, he had surgery and now has a fully healthy right shoulder and a left shoulder that’s “almost there” and should be 100% midway through spring ball, possibly in time for the Blue-White Game. Becht said he’ll throw 20-30 times on Saturday, a “starting point” as he works back onto the field.
“I think getting on the field and playing with your new teammates, I kind of want to show them what I got,” Becht said. “Even though you can watch film, watch tape, they want to see me in person and how I operate on the field when it comes to practice time or even scrimmage time.”
The decision to transfer wasn’t difficult. Becht has a close relationship with head coach Matt Campbell and is already familiar with offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser’s scheme.
Additionally, his dad’s side of the family is from Philadelphia and his mom’s side is from West Virginia, both about three hours away from State College. That allows him to visit his grandparents more often and for them to visit him.
For now, he stands on the field and directs the offense, with formations and routes pulled up on his phone. Iowa State transfer wide receivers Chase Sowell and Brett Eskildsen are also sidelined currently, so they’ve taken on the same role with the wide receivers.
Off the field, Becht has been involved with his receivers, including Cyclone transfers and returning Nittany Lions.
“It’s been awesome,” Becht said. “We’ve had a bunch of meetings, just myself and the receivers, going over formations, concepts, motions, adjustments. We’ve been able to get on the field a couple times.”
While he was considered a team leader in Ames and served as a catalyst for bringing over other transfers, Becht stayed in the shadows during his first days on campus while he learned the ropes.
“I kind of laid back the first couple weeks. I didn’t want to step on anybody’s toes, and I was able to experience how Cooper Cousins led, how (Anthony) Donkoh led in the facility, around the program and off the field,” Becht said.
Becht got a taste of the atmosphere inside Beaver Stadium when he attended Penn State’s outdoor men’s hockey game against Michigan State, which drew over 70,000 fans, more than the capacity of Iowa State’s Jack Trice Stadium. When he takes the field on Sept. 5 in front of over 100,000 fans, here’s what they can expect to see:
“My mentality is to give everything my all,” Becht said. “I’m gonna experience adversity, but to be able to mentally get through that is my biggest thing. That’s my mindset going into every play. I know what I have to do.”
